Colorful Bean Salad

 I love Summer!!! Although, it is not technically Summer yet, aren't you just loving these longer days? I love to come home from work and still have at least a couple of hours of daylight. Even if I don't do anything different and it is all mental, there is something less bleak about folding laundry in natural light. Well you know that it is mental. Technically, it has to do with how the brain reacts to natural light and our circadian rhythm and all of that but you are on the wrong blog if you want to really get technical about the effects of natural light on our brains and health. Last week, I put up valances on my kitchen windows and the next day, I brought them down. Even though they only covered the top third of our windows, it just felt dark and sad. I love our bare windows and all of the natural light that they let in. I spend so much time in my kitchen; cooking, working, reading, folding laundry and just hanging out, and one of my favorite things about it is how bright it is. Luckily for me, or better yet, the neighbors, our kitchen windows face the backyard.

One of my other favorite things about warmer days is that you get to eat a lot of salads.  I see quite a few salad postings in my future. This bean salad is one of my favorites.  If you have black and garbanzo beans, then you have the base of the salad.  Add anything else your heart desires and it will be so good and nutritious.  Every time I make this, it is a little different but always yummy.  This weekend I picked up some golden beats so I decided to use them in the salad.  Usually, I buy the cooked beats from Trader Joe's and save myself the trouble of roasting them.  Mainly because they are so messy and they get red everywhere.  It's like seeding pomegranates.  There is just no way around the crime scene-ish effect.  But golden beats don't make that kind of mess.  You've never roasted beats before?  You're in luck because I'm about to give you a play-by-play:
 

Aren't these gorgeous?

 

Step 1:  Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Step 2: Cut off stems and wash the beats really well.  You may have to use a potato scrubber.

Step 3: Line a heavy cookie sheet or roasting pan with foil paper and place the beats on the foil.
Step 4: Drizzle with olive oil and add kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Step 5: Cover the beats with another layer of foil paper and seal edges
Step 6: Roast in oven for about 45 minutes, until a fork can easily be inserted.  The roasting time will vary depending on how big they are.  So start checking them at about 30 minutes.

Step 7: When the beats are cool enough to handle, remove the peel.  You should be able to rub the peel off with your fingers.  If that doesn't work, take the blade of a knife and rub the peel with the edge of the blade.

8. Once the beets are peeled, you can slice them or dice them and enjoy.  I tossed them in my bean salad.

Here is the recipe for the bean salad:

1 cup cooked and drained black beans*
1 cup cooked and drained garbanzo beans*
1 cup diced roasted beets, per above
2 tablespoons diced red onion
2 hard boiled eggs,diced
1 small tomato, diced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 tablespoons sun flower seeds (unsalted)
zest and juice of one lemon
1/4 cup dressing**
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Toss all ingredients together.

* for the bean recipes, click here.
** for the dressing, I usually make a quick viniagrette: 1 part extra virgin olive oil, 2 parts rice vinegar, 1 small diced shallot, 1 tablespoon dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, salt and pepper.  Put all ingredients in a jar and shake until well combined.

But if you are in a hurry and you don't want to make the dressing, Girard's Light Champagne dressing is wonderful in this salad.  Since I went through the trouble of roasting the beets, I used good old Girard's.

Enjoy!